Does blogged peer review work?

Can the blogosphere work as well as the traditional peer review system? Over the past two months one researcher has been trying to linkurl:find out.;http://www.the-scientist.com/blog/display/54189/ Based on his and his publisher's early assessment of the experiment, using blog-based peer reviewing is only partially helpful, The Chronicle of Higher Education linkurl:reported;http://chronicle.com/free/2008/04/2332n.htm?rss today. The experiment was run by University of California, San Diego, com

Written byAndrea Gawrylewski
| 1 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
1:00
Share
Can the blogosphere work as well as the traditional peer review system? Over the past two months one researcher has been trying to linkurl:find out.;http://www.the-scientist.com/blog/display/54189/ Based on his and his publisher's early assessment of the experiment, using blog-based peer reviewing is only partially helpful, The Chronicle of Higher Education linkurl:reported;http://chronicle.com/free/2008/04/2332n.htm?rss today. The experiment was run by University of California, San Diego, communications professor Noah Wardrip-Fruin, who, with his editors at MIT Press, decided to solicit blog-based peer review of a book manuscript on studying video games with software and media-studies. Wardrip-Fruin received more than 400 comments over the eight weeks that he posted segments of the book. He told The Scientist in an Email that he is still writing up his own assessment of the experiment. At first glance, he added, he was surprised that the blog comments aligned with recommendations made by three peer-reviewers obtained by MIT Press. Wardrip-Fruin told The Chronicle that the blog-based peer review was time consuming because he tried to respond to each comment so that it was more of a discussion. Surprisingly, bloggers were more critical than the experimenters thought they would be. Wardrip-Fruin's editor at MIT Press, Doug Sery, said that bloggers might have difficulty addressing larger themes in the book since they were only reading one section of the book at a time. Update: In response to The Chronicle's article, and this blog covering the project, Wardrip-Fruin wrote today on his blog, linkurl:Grand Text Auto,;http://grandtextauto.org/2008/04/02/expressive-processing-review-a-question-of-goals/ that he had never intended the blog review to replace traditional peer review. He added that he considers the project a great success because it showed "what would take place in a blog-based form of review."
Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Meet the Author

Share
Illustration of a developing fetus surrounded by a clear fluid with a subtle yellow tinge, representing amniotic fluid.
January 2026, Issue 1

What Is the Amniotic Fluid Composed of?

The liquid world of fetal development provides a rich source of nutrition and protection tailored to meet the needs of the growing fetus.

View this Issue
Skip the Wait for Protein Stability Data with Aunty

Skip the Wait for Protein Stability Data with Aunty

Unchained Labs
Graphic of three DNA helices in various colors

An Automated DNA-to-Data Framework for Production-Scale Sequencing

illumina
Exploring Cellular Organization with Spatial Proteomics

Exploring Cellular Organization with Spatial Proteomics

Abstract illustration of spheres with multiple layers, representing endoderm, ectoderm, and mesoderm derived organoids

Organoid Origins and How to Grow Them

Thermo Fisher Logo

Products

Brandtech Logo

BRANDTECH Scientific Introduces the Transferpette® pro Micropipette: A New Twist on Comfort and Control

Biotium Logo

Biotium Launches GlycoLiner™ Cell Surface Glycoprotein Labeling Kits for Rapid and Selective Cell Surface Imaging

Colorful abstract spiral dot pattern on a black background

Thermo Scientific X and S Series General Purpose Centrifuges

Thermo Fisher Logo
Abstract background with red and blue laser lights

VANTAstar Flexible microplate reader with simplified workflows

BMG LABTECH